Widmer World is amazing! There is a sign to help direct you where to park (neighborhood street…read moreparking) nearby. This was our second year visiting and the family hosting this is always so friendly. This year, one of the older ladies even offer to help us take photos outside on the driveway. All of the Christmas decorations, displays, and lights are beautiful. It extends from the front yard through the backyard with many Christmas displays and different cartoon / Disney characters / themes throughout the yard. This is defintely a good stop every year.

I visited this free holiday attraction on Friday, and even with the freezing winter temperatures, I…read moreenjoyed my time here. I arrived around opening time (6:00pm), and there was just a short line for entry. With so much to see and admire about this place, the walk thru was much longer than I expected, though that's partly cuz I didn't know you could pass people till I reached the mid-point. It's only one-way through the various pathways and illuminated tunnels that make up this experience, but if people stop and block foot traffic for long periods of time (for instance, families telling their toddler to look at every single doll and figurine in the windows and displays, or having them pose to take pictures like tourists), there's enough space to just pass them. Widmer World presents a range of themes and collections, including Disney (mickey mouse, toy story, disney princesses, etc), Minions, Snoopy, Santa, Abominable Snowman, geese, penguins, and stuffed animals galore. Cardboard cutouts with artwork, inflatables in various characters, moving props and decor, and animated xmas figures. Detailed miniature displays of various scenes including a charming village, a carnival with ferris wheels, roller coasters, and hot air balloons, and a festive model railroad with multiple trains moving along the tracks. It's so much more than a light show lined with impressive displays all around. It's a whimsical wonderland with lots of moving parts and interactive exhibits to delight guests of all ages. There's a scavenger hunt to find 12 gnomes, as well as a Mr. Potato Head coin toss game, and at the end of the walk thru, there's a guest book you can sign. In the front of the house, a giant chair is available for photo ops, along with more holiday lights and decorations. There are also signs directing visitors on where to find street parking (since you can't park in the court where this event is located).

Our second Christmas stop was Candy Cane Lane. It's a dead end street in which cars slowly come in…read moreand drive to the circle and come back out. We chose to park outside and walk it to take in all the beautiful Christmas displays. What an amazing and relaxing time. I thank the neighborhood for all coming together and providing joy to all for Christmas.

This is my holiday tradition to view Candy Cane Lane; I usually drive but decided to walk since…read moreit's near my home. The neighbors go all out to make their lane festive and jolly. I saw one home that wasn't all decked out, but the homes that participated were festive and full of holiday spirit. It was a much better view, as I took my time walking and taking in the sights and sounds of Christmas. One home had a holiday movie projecting from their front porch, the house at the end of the lane had their usually holiday figure cut outs, not my favorite but I'm sure the kids loved. This town tradition may be small but it's full of cheer each year. The tradition has been going strong since "1955". Till next year...

Wonderful family activity!…read more We are always looking for active things to do with the kids on weekends, and walking around downtown Livermore (our first home in the Bay Area) to check out murals had been on our list all through 2020. We finally got to it this afternoon, after the umpteenth reminder by the missus, who had sent me the website (livermoremurals.com) several months ago. After parking in the free parking garage downtown, we walked to the first of fourteen murals listed on the site - "Welcome to Downtown Livermore" - which depicts the charms of this hidden East Bay gem on each letter. We each took pictures near our favorite image, our kids choosing horses and nature, my better half posing near food and wine, and nerdy me posing near Science (we used to live a stone's throw from the Labs). The next stop was the Fire department mural, which has incredible detail, and then we continued winding our way through the narrow and strangely empty streets in a once-buzzing downtown, taking pictures as we went, posing near our favorites. Our self-guided tour took about 90 minutes, including a stop by Peet's for coffee and scones. The family favorite was the Hope Parrot. My personal fave was the man dripping paint on the side of the Bankhead Theater, which was the 14th and last stop on our tour. We will be back whenever guests visit - for this wonderful (and free!) family activity - in our favorite East Bay town.

An often overlooked WINE COUNTRY near the SF Bay Area. Livermore refers to itself as the oldest…read morewine region in California! It's also the gateway to the Central Valley as well. A good amount of effort has been put into downtown. If you are a vino or just a Wine fan, Livermore is a great destination to visit with plenty of wineries to visit! "Founded in 1869, Livermore is California's oldest wine region, framed by award-winning wineries, farm lands, and ranches that mirror the valley's western heritage. Located in Alameda County, the City of Livermore (pop. 91,411) encompasses 26.44 square miles and is the easternmost city in the San Francisco Bay Area; the gateway to the Central Valley. Protection by the coastal range provides the Livermore Valley with a mild climate that enhances the pursuit of a more relaxed, less congested lifestyle." Stolen from... https://www.cityoflivermore.net/about/default.htm

More liver? No. Livermore? Yes…read more I've been a handful times, and I'll go several more. I like it. It's developed into a nice wine country and features a nice little quaint Downtown. If you can't get to Napa, this will give you a fix. They have street parades and holiday festivals along with a wonderful farmers market Sunday mornings and seasonally Thursday nights. Things to do: 3.5/5 Safety: 4/5 Cleanliness: 4/5 PLACES TO STAY: ============== There needs to be, but isn't a bonafide nice hotel in the downtown or wine country area. However, off the freeway, there are Livermore-esque chain hotels: Hilton Garden, Home2 by Hilton, Courtyard, etc. TOP WINERIES IN THE LIVERMORE REGION: ==================================== There's over 50 wineries in Livermore! Yes! I love Wente, but there's others to explore (and sip): Concannon, Retzlaff, Page Mill, Nottingham Cellars, Darcie Kent Vineyards, Ruby Hill, Steven Kent, and more. LOCAL EATS: =========== * Sauced BBQ, Range Life, Demitris Taverna, First Street Alehouse, Rebel Kitchen, The Last Word, Star Anise , Lemongrass Thai, Zephyr Grill, among others.

Very cool vibe on Downtown Main Street!!…read more This street is historic, and you can tell they push to keep it that way. It's walker and driver friendly. It seems to be a place, at least when I was there on a Saturday late afternoon, evening, for people to take out there classic cars and cruise the strip. And if you want to walk, there are plenty of places to eat with indoor and outdoor seating, all different types of small shops and stores, just a lively, popular area. Seems like the place to be in Pleasanton on the weekends!!

Downtown Pleasanton, basically, Main Street. 4-6 small blocks filled with restaurants and cute…read moreshops with a small town feel. Most all of the restaurants are built into the street, at least on weekends. According to the website, https://www.pleasantondowntown.net, from April 30, 2021 to September 6, 2021, Friday 5pm to Sunday 8pm. The dates will likely be extended due to the variant. Things to do: 3/5 Safety: 4/5 Cleanliness: 4/5 GEOGRAPHY/FACTS *: ==================== Pleasanton is a city in Alameda County, California, Adjacent to Hayward, Livermore, and Dublin. The city has a total area of 24.3 square miles. Located in the Amador Valley, it is a suburb in the East Bay region of the Bay Area. The population was 70,285 at the 2010 census. In 2005 and 2007, Pleasanton was ranked the wealthiest middle-sized city in the United States by the Census Bureau. Pleasanton was ranked number 4 in USA Today's list of "America's 50 best cities to live in" in 2014, number 63 in Money's list of "The Best Places to Live" in 2010, and was named one of "Americans' Top Hometown Spots" in the United States in 2009 by Forbes. Pleasanton was named the third wealthiest city in terms of earnings in the United States by NerdWallet in 2013 and 2016. * Source: Wiki TOP 5 EMPLOYERS **: ================== 1 Workday 5,017 2 Kaiser Permanente 3,730 3 Oracle Corporation 1,493 4 Stanford Healthcare - ValleyCare 1,020 5 Roche Molecular Diagnostics* 1,004 ** according to the city, as of June 2021

I came here last night with a friend cruising around in the car. It was fantastic to see many…read morehouses with Christmas lights! I loved the house with 97.8 FM audio with music matching the lights. This is my third year visiting this area and it never disappoints. I would come yearly as my schedule allows.

In this review I'll be comparing this Christmas Tree Lane (which can be found by simply putting in…read more'Woodland Drive, San Ramon' into Google Maps, and the Christmas Tree Lane in Alameda. While Alameda's Christmas Tree Lane is roughly a single densely packed block with a few blocks around it that sporadically participate, this location is an entire development with the homes more often then not having some type of display up. The streets are wider so it's easier to slowly drive along, and because it's bigger its less busy. Although this location lacks the frosty ice cream truck and the hot chocolate table Alameda's locale boasted, I personally found Woodland Drive to be a bit more enjoyable because it was less stressful to drive through. All in all, the honey and I enjoyed both but would be more likely to return to this Christmas Tree Lane, especially since it had my favorite display of the evening - a blue light river with ducks!

Drumroll...... For…read moremy widely anticipated 500th review, I present to you the upside-down airplane!!! Now I had a hard time agonizing over whether or not I wanted to put this little known local curiosity up into the spotlight, but I figured that it would be worth it for you yelpers! So, what exactly is the upside-down airplane? Well, it's exactly what it sounds like. You gather a bunch of friends with a heady sense of adventure and get in the car. Start out in Fremont on Morrison Canyon Road and go past the residential area and then go up into the mountains and wind around for a bit and choose the right forks in the road, and you'll reach a dead end. At this dead end, you can see some gates barring you from entering any further into private property. If it's a sunny day or you just happen to have good eyes, you can spot this little airplane that is built upside down on top of this tower. How curious... If you're out at night or if you're unlucky, an old man with a big light will come out of his trailer and chase you away. That means RUN FOOLS!!!!! With your heartbeat thudding wildly in your ears, you drive down the windy mountain road, your demise only an arms width away, until it somehow dumps you off in Sunol. Don't worry...680 is nearby, so you can hop back on the freeway and mosey on home. If you're here for other reasons, there are lots of private little spots to pull off on the side of the road, and you'll often see cars parked off to the side with the windows fogged up. I wonder what they could be doing in there? Hm. There you have it Yelpers! You have torn from me the one spot that no one has ever heard of. Don't abuse it too much! So what's the story about this place? I guess since I'm writing an expose, I should go all the way... Apparently the upside down airplane is the location of a test antenna site for a company called TRW. The wire mesh model of the upside down airplane is supposed to act like an antenna. There are lots of antennas set up around here for whatever purposes, who knows? Supposedly they are still in use. They've been up here for many many years, and been the source of entertainment for many high school and college kids. This spot is passed down through word of mouth and car rides at night...until now. Watch out, they have security here year round and will chase you away. Why? Because you're not supposed to be here. If you would like to pursue this curiosity some more there are many pictures for your entertainment. And if you're lucky, maybe I'll take you up there myself one day ;)

Ride your mountain bike up there ...... You'll need to stop a time or 2 to stuff your heart & lungs…read moredown ..... Have fun on the way down!

Sunday With Jessie is a sculpture in the vicinity of Bankhead Theatre. Teaspoon boba shop is…read morenearby. This sculpture won the People's Choice award in Sioux Falls, S.D. In a competition with 54 sculptures. It show a young boy playing with his Labrador Retriever while also eating an ice cream cone. The original shows flesh tones for the boy & dog's tongue. Ice cream is in natural colours. The sculpture here is all bronze. The sculptor is well known nation wide. A couple in Pleasanton, Ca. bought Sunday With Jessie and donated it to the city of Livermore. Creator: Susan Geissler Donor: Gary & Nancy Harrington

Unnamed mural randomly assigned "Workers@Bay Bridge" name due to subject matter. Pics of a few…read morerandom graphics of the engineers, technicians, maintenance & other workers/associates who do the important duties of keeping the bridge safe for everyone. Creators: @OnlyUp_team, @trentart_, @ladyhenze